Kuaishou shares plunge after huge losses

Shares in Kuaishou, one of China's top two short video and social platforms, plunged on Tuesday after the Hong Kong-listed firm posted a net loss of almost 5 billion yuan (US$769.2 million) in the first quarter.

Kuaishou posted revenue of 17.0 billion yuan, a year-on-year growth of 37 percent, for the quarter, but said it lost 4.92 billion yuan due to surging marketing expenses. 

Kuaishou closed at HK$205.6 (US$31.6) on Tuesday, 11.5 percent down compared with the rise of 1.75 percent in the Hang Seng Index.

Advertising surpassed livestream virtual gifts or tips to become Kuaishou's biggest earnings driver in the quarter.

Firms such as Kuaishou and ByteDance's Douyin are speeding up monetization in China through diversified business such as advertising and e-commerce.

During its initial public offering process in February, Kuaishou said it would use the proceeds to enhance its ecosystem, strengthen research and development, and acquire or invest in products, services and businesses related to content, social entertainment and software.

In April, Kuaishou and the Shanghai government announced cooperation on image and event promotion and media integration.

Douyin and Kuaishou are facing competition from rivals Bilibili and Tencent's WeChat. WeChat, China's biggest social platform, is encouraging users to create video clips.